


Safe in the Storm

by SolarEclipser



Category: The Mandalorian (TV)
Genre: Accidental Baby Yoda Acquisition, Bounty Hunters, Comfort, Family Fluff, Fatherhood, Fluff, Force Bond (Star Wars), Force Commands, ManDadlorian, Mando'a, The Force, jetpack
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-09
Updated: 2020-04-09
Packaged: 2021-03-01 21:34:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,780
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23553877
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SolarEclipser/pseuds/SolarEclipser
Summary: “Don’t like storms?” he said. That made the kid look up. “Me… Me neither. Thunder is… it’s like explosions.” He winced at his own words. “I’m, I mean, I’m used to them. But I don’t like them.”The kid stared at him.---------After a bounty hunt ends with less than optimal results, Din and the kid wait out a storm.
Relationships: Baby Yoda & The Mandalorian (The Mandalorian TV)
Comments: 20
Kudos: 262





	Safe in the Storm

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [A Source of Warmth](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21868186) by [CoffeeQuill](https://archiveofourown.org/users/CoffeeQuill/pseuds/CoffeeQuill). 



> Quarantine hasn't been fun but I have plenty of free time during my break to write! This is some father son fluff taking place after season 1.
> 
> My [tumblr](https://solarr-eclipse.tumblr.com/)

The rain pounded hard against the metal walkways, pouring from the sky as his own boots pounded against the catwalk with it. Lightning flashed across the sky, bright and illuminating, the thunder rolling through with thunderous booms.

No one was outside in this mess of a storm, leaving the pathway clear for the chase.

Din Djarin tore through the streets of the dilapidating city, soaked through to the bone but kept warm by the circuitry of his armor, blaster gripped tight in one hand while the tracking fob was in the other. It beeped loud and clear, his target always just around the corner, his heart pounding in his chest with the adrenaline in his veins.

Lightning flashed again. His target was lit up. A human man around his own age, clothes dark, smuggled information carried on a disk on his belt. There were two objectives to the hunt; return with the disk as priority, or proof of its destruction, and drag the traitor in alive if possible for maximum pay. Din intended on both. He  _ needed  _ both.

The target sprinted onto a thin metal bridge that stretched across a chasm, linking two portions of the city. As Din stepped onto it, the target turned from where he stood in the middle, facing him. The disk was pulled off his belt. Din stopped, tense, his heart pounding in his chest. The rain seemed to strengthen as it lashed against his beskar.

“If this is what you want,” the target snarled, barely heard over the rain. “Go get it.”

He turned and flung the disk over the side, its metal illuminated by a flash of lightning, before it plunged down into the chasm below.

_ Fuck.  _ In an instant, it was a decision, and one of payment. As the target turned and ran, Din grabbed onto the bridge’s post and jumped up onto the wire before leaping off after the disk. Behind him, his jetpack burst to life, propelling him down and forward.

His visor focused on the disk. Small, black, he reached a hand out. In seconds, he had his hand wrapped around it.  _ Got it.  _ He turned himself in the air, lessening the force of the jetpack, before aiming to shoot back upwards. Only the jetpack didn’t move with him and instead sent him shooting up at an angle. “Shit!” he hissed, just as he was slammed into the edge of the bridge. White flashed across his vision, a sharp ache beginning in his body.

The jetpack shut off and he was falling.

After a few seconds, he blinked away the daze and swore, flailing in an effort to right himself. For a moment, he couldn’t tell which way was up. Then lightning flashed again.

The jetpack burst to life just as the ground came up to meet him.

His descent slowed but not soon enough to prevent a hard landing. He hit the ground on his forearms and stomach, wincing at the sharp impact that flashed through his body as something  _ crunched. _

He groaned. For a moment, he stayed in place, waiting for the telltale throb of a broken bone. Slowly, everything feeling beaten, he began to get up, first onto his knees before straightening, sitting back on his heels. In one hand, the disk was gripped, and with the other he fumbled for the tracking fob even as its beeps had disappeared.

He looked down and saw the tracking fob. It had splintered into pieces, crushed beneath him. He looked up to the sky just as lightning flashed again, outlining the bridge and city.

With a groan, he fell back onto his hands, a sinking feeling in his stomach. He’d just lost a third of his pay. He squeezed his eyes shut, then pushed himself to get to his feet, taking one step at a time. One foot in front of the other. It’s all he’d been doing the last month. Since Nevarro, since Gideon.  _ One foot in front of the other.  _

From down in this ravine, he could see the shadow of the Razor Crest, distant but in sight. He continued walking. His jetpack would make the journey faster, but his familiarity with the device was a problem. He  _ wasn’t  _ familiar. He couldn’t control it like he wanted. It’d been too long. What were his drills?

The kid had watched him spend hours flying back and forth, up and down, barely keeping in control.

As the rain pounded against him, he made slow progress.

\----

Though greeted with a happy but anxious cry from his charge, Din couldn’t shake the feeling of failure off his shoulders, a sinking feeling in his stomach from the credits he’d lost. He stepped past the waiting kid and dropped the disk on a cargo box.

“Craideb!”

The kid grabbed his cape and tugged. Din looked at him, then bent down into a crouch. The boy wandered up to his boot and put his hands against his shin, staring up at him with big eyes, full of concern.

“I’m fine,” he said. The kid stared at him, his head tilting to the side, before he pushed his hands harder against Din and closed his eyes.

_ Hurting. _

The thought seemed to shove its way into his consciousness, whispered and soft, but it’s  _ alien  _ and he quickly pushed it back and stood. “I’m fine,” he said sternly. “Don’t do… that.”

The kid stared at him and made a whimper as Din stepped around him, heading into the ‘fresher. He closed the door behind him. Barely seconds after, there was another whimper and small claws scratching at the door, but he ignored it as he began to remove his armor, piece by piece, the jetpack carefully set down. He set it all aside to be dried, then peeled off his underclothes, soaked through with rain. It was dumped on the floor as he stepped into the shower. The sonic was fast and efficient, cleaning him in a matter of seconds before he could step out again.

He took his clothes, wrung out what he could and pushed them into the drier. With that turned on, he stepped to a cabinet and took another pair of underclothes, changing into the shirt and pants. Outside the ship, the storm continued. Along with it was the tapping of claws and increasing cries. Din leaned against the door, letting out a sigh, trying to relax at least some of the tension in his muscles.

“Aaaah!” the child wailed, and in an instant, the door forced itself open. Din jolted and grabbed onto the door frame to catch himself before turning. He stared down at the kid, who made a dash for his leg and grabbed on, letting out another whimper. “Abaah!”

“Whoa,” Din muttered before bringing the kid up into his arms. Thunder cracked and the little one pushed up against his chest, trembling. “... Oh.”

Clawed hands grabbed onto him. Din cradled him, then stepped out of the ‘fresher and into the cargo hold. The child was hiding as best he could and Din held him in tight arms. “It’s okay,” he murmured, giving him a bounce before walking to the ladder. He climbed up with one hand and stepped towards the cockpit. The child looked up, sniffling.

The door opened just as lightning forked across the sky. The child let out a shriek and turned away again, trembling even harder, and Din swore beneath his breath as he reached for a button on the console. The rain lashed against the windshield. With ground security activated, they were locked up, and supports had already dug into the ground to hold them steady. He was quick to get out of the cockpit, the door closing behind them, even as the kid was rearing for full on tears.

With a resigned sigh, Din walked into the bedroom. Though the sound of rain did not lessen, nor the following clap of thunder, there was no visual sign of the storm. The kid let out small hiccups, tears barely held back as he clung to Din.

“It’s okay,” he murmured.  _ “Morut’yc, ad’ika.  _ We’re safe. We’re…”

_ We’re boracyk. _

That guilt began to tear through him again as he sat on the bed, grabbing a spare blanket to wrap the kid in. The warmth seemed to calm him somewhat, though the heavy sniffles were there to stay. Din rubbed his back, then laid back on the bed, letting out a breath.

The kid stared at him with tearful eyes. He hid his face again.

“Don’t like storms?” he said. That made the kid look up. “Me… Me neither. Thunder is… it’s like explosions.” He winced at his own words. “I’m, I mean, I’m used to them. But I don’t like them.”

The kid stared at him.

“We’re going to be okay,” he said. “I’m not… I know I’m not doing, uh, perfect. I’m not…” He paused, looking at the kid, who looked back. He let out a sigh. “You don’t know what I’m saying right now. I don’t think you do. But we don’t exactly have money and I have  _ no idea  _ how to find your people. But we’re… we’ll figure it out. I’ll figure it out. And I’ll make sure I keep you away from storms.”

The kid’s eyes seemed to be  _ searching.  _ They bore into him like he was aware, like he knew exactly what Din was saying. It gave him an uncomfortable sensation like his soul was on display and he tore his gaze away, looking for another blanket to pull over.

“Abaf,” the kid mumbled. He squirmed about in his blanket before he settled, eyes shut. Thunder cracked overhead and he flinched, then laid still. There was a tiny sniffle.

_ Safe.  _ The thought appeared in Din’s mind.  _ Safe. Safe. _

Din felt relaxation flow through him. It moved like a wave, from his chest to his head and down to his toes.  _ Warm,  _ it thought.  _ Warm. Safe. Warm. _

Wind howled. A little clawed hand dug into his shirt. Anchoring. Din took a deep breath. “What are you doing,” he mumbled. His eyelids were heavy. He closed them.

_ Sleep.  _ The thought permeated his senses.  _ Sleep… _

The thought faded. The hand on his chest relaxed, the kid going limp, eyes shut and face peaceful. Din blinked at him, then let his eyes shut.

He needed to collect what payment he could get from the information disk. He needed to fly them away from a planet that faced constant storms. But now he was tired and the kid was asleep on top of him, anyway. What reason to move  _ now? _

He didn’t mean to fall under the kid’s spell, but he slipped off into a dream.

**Author's Note:**

> Mando'a Translations -  
> Morut'yc - safe, secure  
> Ad'ika - little one/son/daughter  
> Boracyk - penniless, lit. between jobs
> 
> I write a lot, but this was my first attempt at fanfic. Hope you enjoyed and hope you're staying safe!!  
> My [tumblr](https://solarr-eclipse.tumblr.com/)


End file.
